23 February 2009

Cypress: A Lowcountry Grille

I recently received a cookbook from the Charleston restaurant Cypress: A Lowcountry Grille. The book was written by Executive Chef Craig Deihl who created the menu and has commanded the kitchen at Cypress since 2001. I am always excited to look at new cookbooks and I especially enjoy ones that have great photographs - this cookbook gets some high marks for the quality images.

Cypress is known for its unique blend of lowcountry traditional fare with more exotic, global flavors. With Deihl's descriptive, easy-to-follow recipes and such excellent photography (from photographer Rick McKee), I was eager to dive in and try my hand at a dish.

I found a pretty easy recipe for Steak Diane with Roasted Mushrooms, Gruyere Potato Fondue and Truffle Cracked Peppercorn Cream. Of course, I changed it up a little and did a Ribeye steak instead of a New York Strip. I also substituted a balsamic cream for the Truffle Cracked Peppercorn Cream.

The steak was prepped simple with salt and pepper, then grilled on the Big Green Egg. The Gruyere Potato Fondue was very creamy - it had a heavy, rich, velvety consistency - and the Gruyere cheese provided a nice, subtle complementary flavor to the beef and mushrooms. The cookbook features a number of the lowcountry fusion dishes that are served at Cypress, and there are several helpful diagrams and explanations throughout the book. I'll certainly be trying additional recipes in the book and will let you know how it goes...